Information storage devices such as disk drive devices use magnetic media to store data and a movable slider having a read/write head positioned over the magnetic media to selectively read data from and write data to the magnetic media. The sliders can be formed by processing a wafer which is generally used to manufacture sliders using a series of procedures. At first, the wafer can be subjected to a lapping process, a cleaning process, a depositing process and an etching process. Then, the processed wafer can be sliced into a number of row bars by a suitable cutting tool such as a diamond cutting wheel, where each row bar will ultimately be sectioned into a number of sliders. Next, each row bar is subjected to a series of subsequent procedures, such as lapping, photolithography, bonding and testing. Then, each row bar is cut into a number of individual sliders using a cutter, such as the aforementioned diamond-cutting wheel.
Many of the process steps described above require loading and transferring of the row bars, which can be time consuming and inefficient as these steps are often performed by operators using tweezers. For example, manual transfer of the row bars from one tray to another where the row bar direction changes 90 degrees is time consuming and risks handling defects, cross contamination, and disordering of row bar locations in the tray slots. This 90 degree transfer is typically performed at manufacturing stages such as bar dividing, side lapping, diamond like carbon (DLC) coating, tip de-bonding, and slider parting. Various approaches to repositioning the row bars during the slider manufacturing process have been proposed. However, the conventional approaches often require complex bonding steps and can be fairly time consuming. As a result, an improved system and method for repositioning the row bars during the slider manufacturing process is needed.